Pistol shooting has become increasingly popular during the last two decades, not only because of a general increase in recreational activities during that period, but also due to an increased awareness in communities as well as the nation as a whole of the necessity to increase personal and property security. As a result of this increased awareness and a desire for a disciplined recreational activity, organized pistol competition teams and events have been organized throughout the nation.
Law enforcement officials and military personnel also participate in pistol target shooting and have teams that compete on a continuous basis.
This increased competition and popularity in pistol target shooting as well as the desire for achieving proficiency in the handling of pistols for personal security has created a need for devices that facilitate loading cartridges into revolvers. During competition shooting on the range as well as in attempting to arm a weapon for other uses, the normal manual loading of ammunition cartridges in the cylinder of the revolver has been found unsatisfactory. In manual loading the cartridges, usually six, are held in one hand and the piston in the other, and the shooter feeds cartridges from the palm of his hand to his index finger and thumb of the same hand and inserts them into the pistol chamber. Frequently even the most dextrous competitor or shooter, not to speak of the average shooter, will fumble or drop cartridges during this cumbersome one-at-a-time loading process. Further, it is both distracting and time-consuming to load the revolver one cartridge at a time.
To alleviate the problems of manual one-at-a-time revolver loading, several speed loading devices have been developed and marketed during the past ten or fifteen years.
One speed loading device that has achieved considerable commercial success is manufactured by H.K.S. Products. This loader has a rigid cup-shaped receptacle having an annular array of closed-end bores that receive the rear ends of the cartridges which are dropped in by the shooter one at a time, rim-end first. An aluminum spindle is rotatably mounted centrally in the receptacle and carries a star-like wheel. After the cartridges are dropped in the receptacle, the aluminum spindle is manually rotated by the shooter clamping the star wheel over the rims holding the cartridges in position. The loader, when ready for use in the range booth, or anywhere, is held in one hand by the user with the pistol in the other with the thumb of the latter hand holding the pistol cylinder from rotation in a swing-out position. The cartridges are then inserted in the chambers and the spindle is manually rotated pivoting the star wheel out of engagement with the rims releasing the cartridges into the chambers.
The H.K.S. loader is described in part in U.S. Pat. No. 3,722,125 and reference should be made to that Patent for a more complete description of that loader.
A difficulty in manufacturing the H.K.S. loader results from the requirement of nine different parts in the loader all but two of which need to be machined or worked prior to assembly. The cup-shaped receptacle is a rigid molded plastic piece that is subject to cracking and breakage when the shooter drops the loader, as frequently occurs, particularly if the loader is filled with cartridges. Also the locking spindle must be rotated each time the cartridges are put in the loader and each time the cartridges are released from the loader into the cylinders. While this is not an undue inconvenience for the regular shooter it can present some difficulty for the occasional shooter.
Furthermore, the H.K.S. receptacle interferes with some manufacturers' weapons and requires either a modification of the handle or the purchase of a new set of handle grips designed to accommodate the speed loader, which of course is costly.
Another loader manufactured by Safariland Corporation has found considerable success in the shooter's marketplace. This loader is somewhat similar to the H.K.S. loader described above except that the rotatable spindle is automatically released from the cartridge rims as the cartridges are inserted in the cylinder. This additional feature requires an additional axially movable spindle part, a biasing spring and a rotating inducing spindle cam. It is somewhat difficult to load because the ends of the bullets must be engaged with a flat surface just before the rim engaging spindle is rotated. And, the Safariland loader creates pistol grip interference and requires specially designed models to accommodate various manufacturers' pistols even in the same caliber.
A third prior speed loader is referred to as a "speed strip" manufactured by the Bianchi Company. This speed loader is a straight elongated vinyl plastic molding having six rim receiving T-shaped recesses in one side that receive the rim end of the cartridges. After the shooter loads the rims in the strip, the cartridges are loaded into the cylinders one or two at a time and released by snapping the strip off the rim of the loaded cartridges.
It is the primary object of the present invention to ameliorate the problems noted above in prior art speed loading devices for revolvers.